Oh there were no narrow boundaries in our debates. that was the case until I got stuck in a religion class with a 45 year old virgin that insisted we were going to he'll if we didn't attend church every Sunday. she went everyday herself. I dropped that class. Up until then I was presented with questions concerning equality, justice, how a conscience develops within us, and the value of finding meaning in our lives - and open discussion was pretty much all there was.

I was taught biology by a former nun. she was a great teacher that made photosynthesis come alive, and lead us through evolutionary theory so that it felt like we were piecing together the puzzle ourselves. It's a shame that so many kids are getting spoon fed such important ideas as though they are toxic.

anyway - I don't understand why extraordinary personal understanding should not play a part in relationships or culture or forming community. It seems like an odd idea to try to impose such restrictions. We just see religion very differently. I've experienced very negative and very positive aspects. The negative aspects usually revolved around power being exercised and justified and abused. I have no time for any of that. But I completely respect those that see faith as a way to approach big questions. To me faith is all about questions and doubts, without limits. And beliefs are about answers. I worry about any beliefs that do not recognize their own limitations. That is where you get both bad science and bad religion. And when limits are recognized as science and religion in essence call for, then human possibilities can be separated from the power structures that attempt to restrict possibilities.

I personally find too much of science and too much of religion weighed down by accumulated detritus. I would love to see a return to the core principles that sparked all such disciplines and a complete restructuring of societies based on real needs. Make minutes 100 seconds or whatever is deemed particularly meaningful today, instead of what made sense for people thousands of years ago. Define progress by what actually works within the obvious material limits we are saddled with, instead of being limited by so many old ideas of the past that progress must somehow be built upon, even though their meaning has gone stale while put to work holding up multiple delusions. That would make me happy. Power messes it all up, and I recognize the need to understand how power works, but I refuse to allow power to define meaning. I like my delusions to be my own while remaining open to understanding as much as I can.